Past Productions
2014-2015 The Addams Family The musical’s ghoulish genealogy traces back to the original single-panel comics by cartoonist Charles Addams, which depicted the Addams as a humorously gloomy satire of the American nuclear family by having a mostly black and white production. The Addams Family consists of Morticia Addams (the mother), Gomez Addams (the father), Fester Addams (the uncle), Wednesday Addams (the daughter), Pugsley Addams (the son), Grandmama Addams (the grandmother), and Lurch (the butler). With music and lyrics by Andrew Lippa and a book by Marshall Brickman and Rick Elice, the musical comedy opened on Broadway in 2010 to less-than-kind reviews – yet garnered commercial success and several Drama Desk Award nominations. The show itself revolves around young adult Wednesday’s secret engagement to Lucas Beineke, a boy who is as average as the Addamses are abnormal. When the ordinary, Ohioan Beinekes visit the unconventional Addams’ household for dinner one night, all hell breaks loose. 8, the play Beyond the Page Theatre Company of West Potomac HS Joins Nationwide Performances of Landmark Marriage Equality Play by Academy Award-Winning Screenwriter of Milk & J. Edgar. Alexandria, VA – Beyond The Page Theatre Company at West Potomac High School, with license from the American Foundation for Equal Rights (AFER) and Broadway Impact, is proud to announce a 4 performance only reading of “8,” a play chronicling the historic trial in the federal constitutional challenge to California’s Proposition 8, written by Academy Award-winning screenwriter and AFER Founding Board Member Dustin Lance Black. “8” is an unprecedented account of the Federal District Court trial in Perry v. Schwarzenegger (now Hollingsworth v. Perry), the case filed by AFER that successfully overturned Proposition 8 and restored the freedom to marry for gay and lesbian couples in California. Black, who penned the Academy Award-winning feature films Milk and J. Edgar, based “8” on the actual words of official trial transcripts, first-hand observations of the courtroom drama and interviews with the plaintiffs and their families. Little Shop of Horrors The first full double-casted production of the Beyond the Page Theatre Company, "Little Shop of Horrors" follows the misadventures of Seymour (David Jarzen and Aubrey Blount), a down-and-out floral assistant who longs to get the girl of his dreams (Nikki Amico and Sarah Lore) and escape life on Skid Row. He becomes an overnight sensation when he discovers an exotic plant with a mysterious craving for fresh blood. Soon “Audrey II” (Sam Rainey and Julian Worth) grows into an ill-tempered, carnivore who offers him fame and fortune in exchange for feeding its growing appetite! Laced with dark humor and irresistible music, "Little Shop of Horrors" is one of the longest-running off-Broadway shows of all time. This production of Little Shop of Horrors was 95% all green, recycled materials, even though the Plant wants to destroy the word, West Potomac High School wants to save it; one tree at a time.In addition to going green, West Potomac is collecting toothbrushes at the different performances for the many homeless shelters throughout the Northern Virginia area! All the costumes and props were student-produced. 2013-2014 SPAMalot SPAMalot tells the story of rude Frenchmen, cancan dancers, the Lady of the Lake and her Laker Girls, Killer rabbits, catapulting cows, and the somewhat odd Knights who say "ni", which are just part of the adventures and dangers awaiting King Arthur and his knights of the very very very round table in their quest for the holy grail.Lovingly ripped off from the motion picture, Monty Python and the Holy Grail, Spamalot is the fresh Broadway hit and irreverent parody of the Arthurian legend. It was nominated for 14 Tony Awards, winning three, including Best New Musical for 2005. During its initial run, it was seen by more than two million people. Leading the quest is King Arthur (Peter Serle) with his trusty servant Patsy (Eddie Perez). Playing his gallant knights are Austin Harlow as Sir Lancelot the Homicidally Brave, David Jarzen as Sir Robin the Not-Quite-So-Brave-as-Sir-Lancelot, Ben Roberts as Sir Galahad, the Dashingly Handsome, Hunter Harlow as Sir Bedevere, the Strangely Flatulent, and Anjum Choudhury as The Lady of the Lake. West Potomac High School won 9 National Capital Area (NCA) Cappies Awards, including Musical, Lead Actor in a Musical, Supporting Actor in a Musical, Featured Actress, and Song, and was nominated for 19 Cappies Award. Moreover, the production broke the record for number of show nominations. It also won multiple local awards that can be found on our awards page. Peter Pan and Wendy "Peter Pan and Wendy" is considered to be J. M. Barrie's most famous work. It was written in 1904 about a boy who refuses to grow up. The play tells the story of Peter Pan, a mischievous little boy who can fly, and his adventures on the island of Neverland with Wendy Darling and her brothers, John and Michael, the fairy Tinker Bell, the Lost Boys, the Indian princess Tiger Lily and the pirate Captain Hook. The leads in the production were double-casted including Sam Rainey and Kristi Thomas as Peter Pan, Emma Norville and Eliza Lore as Wendy, Rebecca Roberts and Tegan Wilson as Tinkerbell, and Emma Harris and Peter Serle as Captain Hook. Avenue Q An American musical in two acts, conceived by Robert Lopez and Jeff Marx, who wrote the music and lyrics. The book was written by Jeff Whitty and the show was directed by Jason Moore. Avenue Q is an "autobiographical and biographical" coming-of-age parable, addressing and satirizing the issues and anxieties associated with entering adulthood. Its characters lament that as children, they were assured by their parents, and by children's television programs such as PBS's Sesame Street, that they were "special" and "could do anything"; but as adults, they have discovered to their surprise and dismay that in the real world their options are limited, and they are no more "special" than anyone else. The musical is notable for the use of puppets, animated by unconcealed puppeteers, alongside human actors. The School Edition contains most of the songs from the Broadway production except for "My Girlfriend who lives in Canada" and it substitutes "My Social Life is Online" for "The Internet is for...". The production was taken to the Virginia Theatre Association (VTA) Conference in the fall of 2013 as a One Act and was awarded Honorable Mention and Lizzy Rader (Kate Monster) was recognized as a All-Star/All-State Cast recipient. The cast consisted of eleven actors and 16 puppets. The two-person pit was Kathy Manly on piano and Kendell Haywood on drums. This dynamic duo went on to perform in the Beyond the Page's production of "Little Shop of Horrors". 2012-2013 Young Frankenstein: the Musical With masterful physical humor, brilliant pacing, and excellent showmanship, students put a hilarious spin on a tragic tale in West Potomac High School’s production of Mel Brooks’ Young Frankenstein, the musical. It is a musical with a book by Mel Brooks and Thomas Meehan and music and lyrics by Brooks. It is based on the 1974 black and white comedy film of the same name written by Brooks and Gene Wilder and directed by Brooks, who has described it as his best film. "Young Frankenstein: the Musical" is a musical parody of the horror film genre, especially the 1931 Universal Pictures adaptation of Mary Shelley's Frankenstein and its 1939 sequel, Son of Frankenstein. First opening on Broadway in 2007, Young Frankenstein closed after a 14-month run. West Potomac’s production, advertised “for mature audiences only”, performed most of the bawdy humor from the Broadway version. The West Potomac's Beyond the Page Theatre Company's production of "Young Frankenstein: The Musical" has received seven National Capital Area Cappies nominations, including Best Musical. The production won the awards for Supporting Actor in a Musical (David Jarzen) and Lead Actor in a Musical (Ben Roberts). This was the first time Beyond the Page Theatre Company won a Cappies Award. Night of the Living Dead The Beyond the Page Theatre Company at West Potomac High School presented the classic horror Night of the Living Dead; ''the story that started our fascination with the Zombie culture. In ''Night of the Living Dead, a group of people are trapped inside a farm house in West Virginia as legions of the walking dead try to get inside and use them for food. The play starred Alex Amico as Tom, Hilary Canary as Judy, Miles Gheesling as Harry, Eliza Lore as Barbara, Katelyn McConville as Helen, Joe Quinn as Ben and many more. Dracula Beyond the Page Theatre Company at West Potomac High School presented Dracula ''by Stephen Dietz and directed Philip Lee Clark. ''Dracula is an 1897 Gothic horror novel by Irish author Bram Stoker. Famous for introducing the character of the vampire Count Dracula, the novel tells the story of Dracula's attempt to relocate from Transylvania to England, and the battle between Dracula and a small group of men and women led by Professor Abraham Van Helsing. The production starred Peter Serle as Count Dracula and Joe Quinn as Professor Van Helsing. Also featuring many more talented actors, designers and technicians. 2011-2012 Seussical Beyond the Page Theatre Company's production of Seussical follows the adventures of such well-known characters as Horton the Elephant, the Cat in the Hat, Yertle the Turtle and The Whos down in Whoville as the show integrates storylines from more than 20 Seuss books into the script. The cast is comprised of more than 40 West Potomac students as well as 30 younger actors from eight neighboring elementary and middle schools. This group of actors is led by seasoned performers and West Potomac seniors Ryan Walker (Horton the Elephant), Maddie White (Gertrude McFuzz), Rachelle Husband (Mazie La Bird) and Julia Warren (Cat in the Hat). Joining these actors is Waynewood sixth grader Aubrey Blount in the role of JoJo, the boy with a big imagination. Inherit the Wind The winds of change are blowing in Little Rock, Arkansas. It is 1968, and schoolteacher Bertram Cates is the first person to violate a law prohibiting the teaching of Darwin’s theory of evolution in schools. The case quickly becomes about more than Cates as the battle between legal titans Matthew Harrison Brady and Henry Drummond erupts into a firestorm of accusations and suspicion. The right to free thought is on trial, but in this town of religious zealots, will it receive the right verdict? Inherit the Wind, written by Jerome Lawrence and Robert Edwin Lee, opened on Broadway to rave reviews in 1955, and has been adapted to several film versions. It is a fictionalized version of the 1925 Scopes “Monkey” Trial that was intended by the authors as an allegory for the McCarthy Trials. In the play, Bertram Cates is on trial for teaching his students about Darwin and the theory of evolution. Highly religious Little Rock welcomes the famous prosecutor, Matthew Harrison Brady, to its town, and its residents throw their support behind this god-fearing man whole-heartedly. Cates’ defense lawyer, Henry Drummond, is a famous agnostic who is immediately condemned as the devil’s spawn. Tensions rise in the courthouse during the sweltering Arkansas summer when the trial takes place. Category:Theatre Category:High School Category:FCPS Category:West Potomac High School